Perceptions of K-12 Teachers on the Cognitive, Affective, and Conative Functionalities of Gifted Students Engaged in Design Thinking

Abstract

Gifted students are our nation’s natural resource of technological inventors and innovators, but oftentimes do not receive differentiated instruction in technology/engineering design learning environments. This is not negligence or lack of care by the instructor, but a national issue of not sufficiently providing pre- and in-service teachers with formal training opportunities in gifted education. The purpose of this study was to understand the perceptions of K-12 teachers, trained in gifted education pedagogy and the Design Thinking Model (DTM), after their gifted students engaged in design thinking activities. Fifteen K-12 educators of different content areas reflected in focus groups upon how their gifted students performed. Teachers noted cognitive, affective, and conative phenomena, such as development of 21st Century capabilities, externalizations of psychosocial behaviors (e.g., perfectionism, avoidance of failure, gifted underachievement), and strong motivations to solve problems for end-users. The researchers suggest that with the reality of educators unable to receive formal training in gifted education, developing an awareness of intrapersonal functionalities of gifted students engaged in design thinking can be a significant step toward providing supportive learning environments.

Online Design Thinking Problems for Enhancing Motivation of Gifted Students

“…It is clear that the online design thinking problems played a significant role in fostering the motivation levels of gifted students. This confirms the research results of Stith et al (2020), Wei et al (2020), Bordel et al (2019) and Ahmad et al (2017). Gifted students found the design thinking class fun and enjoyable.…”

“…Prototype is about selecting the best solution and creating prototypes that can be justified. Lastly, in the test stage, the prototype is tested in the real situation and evaluated with experiments (Stith et al, 2020).…”

“…Educators had positive perceptions of the utility of a design thinking approach for educating gifted students. Teachers said that design thinking tasks foster the development of 21st century skills, has psychological benefits, and increases the motivation level of students (Stith et al, 2020). Teachers explained that a design thinking approach increases motivation.…”

“…Thirdly, the problems students solve are from the real word, which students experience, feel, see, and live. In the fourth place, students are not constrained to particular ways of finding solutions; instead, they can create their own solutions in their own ways (Stith et al, 2020).…”

“…Achieving the aim of developing 21st century skills and capabilities, namely, creative thinking, critical thinking, communication, and collaboration, requires teachers to adopt a suitable pedagogy to meet students' unique needs in the class (Sakarneh & Al-Swelmyeen, 2020;Samat & Ismail, 2020;Stith et al, 2020). Gifted students, specifically, encounter a lack of teaching support in the regular classroom, which causes them to experience more motivational issues in relation to learning and school than their non-gifted peers.…”